| Breckinridge County, Kentucky | |
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Breckinridge County, Kentucky courthouse in Hardinsburg, Kentucky
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Location in the state of Kentucky |
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Kentucky's location in the U.S. |
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| Founded | 1800 |
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| Named for | John Breckinridge (1760–1806), Kentucky statesman. |
| Seat | Hardinsburg |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
585.53 sq mi (1,517 km²) 572.41 sq mi (1,483 km²) 13.12 sq mi (34 km²), 2.24% |
| Population - (2010) - Density |
20,059 17/sq mi (7/km²) |
| Time zone | Central: UTC-6/-5 |
| Website | www.breckinridgecounty.net |
Breckinridge County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. It was formed in 1799. The population was 20,059 in the 2010 Census. Its county seat is Hardinsburg, Kentucky.[1] The county is named for John Breckinridge (1760–1806), a former Kentucky Attorney General, state legislator, United States Senator, and United States Attorney General. Breckinridge is a prohibition or dry county, although on March 30, 2010, a referendum passed whereby Hardinsburg will become "moist".
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The county was formed out of Hardin County by a 1799 enactment of the Kentucky General Assembly, but the first Fiscal Court did not meet until 1800.
In 1816, when future United States President Abraham Lincoln was seven years old, his Thomas Lincoln and his family spent a few weeks in Hardinsburg and occupied a small cabin near what is now the Kentucky FFA Leadership Training Camp in Hardinsburg. Local residents gave them a cow for milk. The Lincolns left Kentucky through Breckinridge County, the Ohio River at Cloverport, on a ferry operated by Jacob Weatherholt.
During the American Civil War, Confederate cavalry burned the local courthouse, which was being used by Union troops as a barracks, but most of the records were saved. Sue Munday, a noted Confederate guerrilla, was captured near Irvington and later hanged after a questionable trial. The site of his execution is now indicated by an historic marker in downtown Louisville, Kentucky.
In the nineteenth century, the Victoria Coal mines were the first to produce coal oil, and Cloverport exported coal oil to Great Britain, where it was used to light Buckingham Palace.
United States Supreme Court Justice Wiley Blount Rutledge, who served on the court from 1943 to 1949, was born at Tar Springs in 1894.
On June 6, 1932, at Hardinsburg, Sam Jennings became the second last person to be publicly executed in the United States.
In the 1950s Rough River Dam State Resort Park was developed at the southern border of the county.
A third courthouse fire nearly destroyed county records in 1958.
Breckinridge County High School prides itself as the champion of the 1965 and 1995 Kentucky High School Athletic Association's Boys' Basketball tournaments.
The Breckinridge County Archives, formed in 1984, was the first state-funded archival repository in the history of the United States and is known across the nation as an excellent resource for genealogical and historical research.
According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 585.53 square miles (1,516.5 km2), of which 572.41 square miles (1,482.5 km2) (or 97.76%) is land and 13.12 square miles (34.0 km2) (or 2.24%) is water.[2]
| Historical populations | |||
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| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1810 | 3,430 |
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| 1820 | 7,485 | 118.2% | |
| 1830 | 7,345 | −1.9% | |
| 1840 | 8,944 | 21.8% | |
| 1850 | 10,593 | 18.4% | |
| 1860 | 13,236 | 25.0% | |
| 1870 | 13,440 | 1.5% | |
| 1880 | 17,486 | 30.1% | |
| 1890 | 21,034 | 20.3% | |
| 1900 | 20,534 | −2.4% | |
| 1910 | 21,034 | 2.4% | |
| 1920 | 19,652 | −6.6% | |
| 1930 | 17,368 | −11.6% | |
| 1940 | 17,744 | 2.2% | |
| 1950 | 15,528 | −12.5% | |
| 1960 | 14,734 | −5.1% | |
| 1970 | 14,789 | 0.4% | |
| 1980 | 16,861 | 14.0% | |
| 1990 | 16,312 | −3.3% | |
| 2000 | 18,648 | 14.3% | |
| 2010 | 20,059 | 7.6% | |
| http://ukcc.uky.edu/~census/21027.txt | |||
As of the census[3] of 2000, there were 18,648 people, 7,324 households, and 5,309 families residing in the county. The population density was 33 per square mile (13 /km2). There were 9,890 housing units at an average density of 17 per square mile (6.6 /km2). The racial makeup of the county was 95.84% White, 2.86% Black or African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.08% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.09% from other races, and 0.90% from two or more races. 0.72% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 7,324 households out of which 31.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.60% were married couples living together, 8.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.50% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the county the population was spread out with 24.90% under the age of 18, 8.20% from 18 to 24, 26.70% from 25 to 44, 26.00% from 45 to 64, and 14.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 98.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.30 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $30,554, and the median income for a family was $36,575. Males had a median income of $31,004 versus $19,371 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,402. About 11.80% of families and 15.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.60% of those under age 18 and 19.00% of those age 65 or over.
Breckinridge County has two school districts:
Breckinridge County Public Library is located at 112 South Main Street in Hardinsburg, Kentucky. The library is open Monday from 8:30-7:30, Tuesday through Friday from 8:30-4:30, and Saturday from 8:30-12:30 Central Standard Time.
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